outdoor photography

Grasshopper Sparrow Yesterday I went to my favorite little sparrow spot in Seminole County.  It has been fantastic to us this winter, since we've been able to see Grasshopper Sparrow, Vesper Sparrow, Song Sparrow, White-crowned Sparrow, Lincoln's Sparrow, and even a Lark Sparrow, not to mention our more commons species: Savannah, Swamp and Chipping Sparrows.  However, since early January, it seems that the two places I check had all but dried up.  I haven't seen anything but Savannah and Swamp Sparrows in over a month, which is strange because they shouldn't have left us yet. Field Sparrow But this morning, on my way to one of my spots, I saw about a dozen Savannah Sparrows along the canal beside the road. I decided to pull over and see what I could find.  Among the Savannah Sparrows were 2 Grasshopper Sparrows and 1 Song Sparrow.  Then in the distance I saw my first Field Sparrow in Seminole County.  Field Sparrows are not too common here.  ...

Painted Bunting One of my favorite migrants, though we get to see these all winter long as well. Lately I've been considering why it is I find birding so continuously fascinating, and even addicting. Of course there's the beauty of the birds, the thrill of finding them (especially rarities), and the challenge of learning to identify them.  I also have great interest in learning about their behavior--why they act the way they do.  It's a fascinating endeavor.  But recently I've become more aware of another reason why I'm fascinated by birding--the rhythms of nature. Bald Eagle Bald Eagles are residents here in Florida, and they breed here, but thin out in the summer time. This one stole a Rock Pigeon from a Cooper's Hawk and flew off with it. I'm growing in my appreciation and understanding of this aspect of birding--I certainly have not arrived.  But year after year, I'm starting to at least appreciate the rhythms of nature in Florida and ...

Grasshopper Sparrow There are six Ammodramus sparrows that occur in Florida, and now I have presentable photos of all of them. This may be my favorite group of birds in the world. I know the Henslow's Sparrow photo below is terrible, but I'm not complaining. I suspect I won't get a better photo unless I see one up north in the summer.  Full disclosure, though: my Seaside Sparrow Photo was not taken in Florida; it's from South Carolina.  But I have seen them here in FL too--just too far away for photos.  Would someone please send a Baird's Sparrow here please? Saltmarsh Sparrow Nelson's Sparrow Seaside Sparrow Le Conte's Sparrow Henslow's Sparrow

White-crowned Sparrow Yesterday I drove out to Lust Rd., which is a road that takes you very close to Lake Apopka.  It actually can take you all the way to the lake, but at one point it's fenced off, preventing you from entering the restoration area.  But the road near the fence is a pretty great place to look for sparrows.  Yesterday I found 5 species and photographed four: Savannah , White-crowned, Vesper, Field and Grasshopper Sparrows.  The Field Sparrow is the first I've seen in Orange Co., and only the second I've seen in Florida.  Vesper Sparrow Field Sparrow Grasshopper Sparrow This is also the area where I found my first Western Tanager.  I see Blue-headed Vireos here frequently this time of year, but this is a species that seems rather adept at preventing me from getting good photos.  I usually end up with a cluttered background behind these birds whenever I get them in my sights.  Yesterday morning gave me my best photo...

Grasshopper Sparrow I love fall migration, don't get me wrong, but I get really excited when sparrows start coming in.  This past Saturday I found my first Savannah Sparrow at Merritt Island, and today I went to my favorite local spot for sparrows on a little street south of Lake Jesup.  It's just a fence line with dense vegetation around it and an open field on both sides.  But it's a great spot for sparrows. Today I found Swamp, Savannah, and Grasshopper Sparrows here.  The Grasshopper Sparrows were unusually cooperative. Shortly after I arrived I saw one perch a distance away on the top of a fence post along with a Savannah Sparrow.  Then a little later a couple flew pretty close to me; one perched on a fence post and another on a plant, and they posed for a few minutes.  Shortly after they left I saw two again in similar places.  Perhaps they're the same two.  They gave me my best photos of the species I have to date. I'm looking forward t...

Lark Sparrow This past fall I've decided to concentrate my birding on sparrows in Florida.  We have three sparrows that are extremely common this time of year: Savannah, Chipping and Swamp Sparrows. I have seen and photographed these more times than I can count. Happily, Eastern Towhees can be found here all year round. But aside from these four, sparrows here can be somewhat of a challenge. Here's my progress so far.  I'm including photos of a couple sparrows (Lark and Bachman's) that I happened to find before this past fall. Bachman's Sparrow Clay-colored Sparrow Nelson's Sparrow Grasshopper Sparrow Vesper Sparrow Le Conte's Sparrow Lincoln's Sparrow I see Song Sparrows very infrequently, and I've seen one White-crowned Sparrow and one Saltmarsh Sparrow, but I have no decent photographs of these species yet.  I'm still hoping to find a Fox, Henslow's, Field,White-throated and Seaside Sparrow in Florida. H...

Grasshopper Sparrow Grasshopper Sparrows are one of my favorite sparrow species.  They're beautiful, but they're also somewhat of a challenge to find so you can have a sense of accomplishment when you find one. But they're not so rare here that you can't expect to find one.  There are a couple places where I can see them somewhat reliably.  And recently a couple of them have come out in the open enough for presentable photos. Grasshopper Sparrow Grasshopper Sparrow Grasshopper Sparrow Savannah Sparrow with Grasshopper Sparrow for comparison

Canal St. Fence It doesn't look like much, but this little fence on Canal St just south of Lake Jesup is quickly becoming one of my favorite places for photographing sparrows and other perching birds.  This morning was one of my best sparrow photo days.  I was hoping to find a White-crowned Sparrow here, which I didn't find, but I did find many Savannah Sparrows, two Grasshopper Sparrows, one Vesper Sparrow and one Swamp Sparrow, and all but the Swamp Sparrow posed nicely for photos.  And if you stand in the right place, you can sometimes get photos of birds with the sun behind you and nothing behind the bird, giving you a clean background.  Oh, and this morning I also found an Eastern Phoebe perched quite nicely, and the photo below may be my all-time favorite phoebe photo. Vesper Sparrow Grasshopper Sparrow Savannah Sparrow Savannah and Grasshopper Sparrow Eastern Phoebe